In a near-unanimous vote at Wednesday’s meeting, the Student Senate elected to award the Senior Class Council money to put on three events during the spring semester.
The Senate voted 37-1 to give $3,000 to the SCC; the cash will come from the Senate’s appropriations budget, which is off-limits to the SCC without Student Government consent.
“The Senior Council does not qualify for appropriations, so they are going through the finance committee for money to stage events that are open to the whole campus,” said Student Body Treasurer Buddy Bryson, who sponsored the resolution.
Tucker Beeninga, senator from the College of Design and a senior in landscape architecture, cast the lone dissenting vote.
The news was a relief for the SCC; with the money, it will be able to stage three more events designed to involve the whole campus and raise money for the Senior Class Gift.
According to SCC and Senior Class president Kristy Craig, the three events the SCC will present with the money are:
a car smash on Feb. 21, in conjunction with the annual Ram Roast. In the car smash, the SCC acquires an old car that is not in use anymore and gets rid of all the “dangerous parts,” Craig said. “Then we paint it Carolina blue and pass out objects for students to smash the car with.” a 6-on-6 flag football tournament on March 20. a post-St. Patrick’s Day party on March 25. The location is yet to be determined, but the spirit of St. Patrick will be heavy at the soiree. “Even though it’s a week after [St. Patrick’s day], there will be a lot of green,” said Jessica Seymour, an SCC member and senior in accounting.
While the SCC will be staging these events, they aren’t just for members of the senior class: The entire campus is encouraged to participate.
“SCC has gone above and beyond this year getting students involved. Now, not the SCC is providing opportunities for the entire student body,” Ethan Harrelson, a senator in CALS and senior in biology, said. “I fully support giving them money to put on these events and further their cause.”
All of the proceeds earned during the three events will go straight toward the Senior Class Gift. This year, the gift is will honor the University by supporting a new gateway at the corner of Dan Allen Drive and Hillsborough Street, according to Craig.
Even with the $3,000 expenditure, the Student Senate Finance Committee still has $6,300 left in its budget for the fiscal year, which ends July 1, according to Bryson. Any of that money that is not spent will be rolled into next year’s appropriations budget, Bryson said.
The SCC award is money well-spent, said Stephen Kouba, Student Senate president and a senior in political science.
“The Senior Class Council is an integral part of student life, and they deserve to be adequately funded for their projects,” Kouba said.
